Image pickup apparatus

ABSTRACT

An image pickup apparatus according to an embodiment of the present technology includes a main body and a movable unit. The main body includes a lens tube portion. The movable unit includes a movable portion and a bias portion that biases the movable portion toward the lens tube portion, the movable portion having a relative position with respect to the lens tube portion being variable along an axial direction orthogonal to an optical axis of the lens tube portion.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/325,689, filed on Jan. 11, 2017, which is a U.S.National Phase of International Patent Application No. PCT/JP2015/002583filed on May 22, 2015, which claims priority benefit of Japanese PatentApplication No. JP 2014-154436 filed in the Japan Patent Office on Jul.30, 2014. Each of the above-referenced applications is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present technology relates to an image pickup apparatus.

BACKGROUND ART

In recent years, self-shooting (selfie) in which a user photographshim/herself as an object has become popular owing to developments ofsocial media, and a demand for an image pickup apparatus with whichusers can comfortably perform self-shooting is increasing. For example,Patent Document 1 discloses a flip phone and a touch-panel-type mobileterminal including a camera for self-shooting.

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2013-229854

SUMMARY Problem to be Solved

In recent years, there is a growing need for an image pickup apparatussuch as a digital still camera that enables self-shooting to beperformed by a user him/herself. However, it is currently the case thatexisting image pickup apparatuses do not include functions suited forself-shooting.

In view of the circumstances as described above, the present technologyaims at providing an image pickup apparatus suited for self-shooting.

Means for Solving the Problem

According to an embodiment of the present technology, there is providedan image pickup apparatus including a main body and a movable unit.

The main body includes a lens tube portion.

The movable unit includes a movable portion and a bias portion thatbiases the movable portion toward the lens tube portion, the movableportion having a relative position with respect to the lens tube portionbeing variable along an axial direction orthogonal to an optical axis ofthe lens tube portion.

According to the image pickup apparatus, a member to be attached, whichis capable of displaying an object image, for example, can be interposedbetween the lens tube portion and the movable portion. In addition,since the movable unit includes a bias mechanism, the member to beattached can be held stably. With this configuration, a user canphotograph while checking an image to be taken on the member to beattached, which displays the image pickup direction. As a result, imagesthat the user desires can be obtained by self-shooting.

A typical example of the member to be attached is an electronicapparatus capable of receiving an object image from the image pickupapparatus, such as a display apparatus and a mobile terminal. Other thanthose above, a product including a mirror surface capable of presentingto the user his/her own image may be used.

The main body may further include a casing portion. The casing portionhas a longitudinal direction in the axial direction orthogonal to theoptical axis and is capable of accommodating the movable portion.

The lens tube portion may be provided at one of end portions of thecasing portion in the longitudinal direction, and the movable portionmay be provided at the other one of the end portions of the casingportion in the longitudinal direction.

The movable portion may be configured by a shaft-like member. Theshaft-like member has a longitudinal direction in the axial directionorthogonal to the optical axis and is movable along the second axialdirection. The bias portion may include an elastic member fixed betweenthe shaft-like member and the casing.

The movable portion may further include an engagement portion and may bemovable between a first position at which the engagement portion engageswith the other one of the end portions and a second position at whichthe engagement portion is positioned apart from the other one of the endportions in the axial direction orthogonal to the optical axis.

With this configuration, since the engagement portion engages with theother one of the end portions at the first position, it becomes possibleto prevent the movable portion from making improper movements. Moreover,since the second position is determined based on the size of the memberto be attached when the member to be attached is held by the movableportion and the bias mechanism, for example, the member to be attachedcan be held disregard the size thereof.

The engagement portion may be configured to be switchable between afirst posture at which the engagement portion engages with the other oneof the end portions at the first position and a second posture at whichthe engagement portion can hold a member to be attached in cooperationwith the lens tube portion at the second position.

With this configuration, since the second posture is a posture opposingthe axial direction orthogonal to the optical axis, the member to beattached can be held more effectively.

The lens tube portion may include a lens and a mirror surface portion ina circumference of the lens. The mirror surface portion may be anannular convex mirror portion that is convex in an image pickupdirection. With this configuration, by visually checking the convexmirror portion, the relative position between the user and the lens tubeportion can be checked.

The lens tube portion may further include a light-emitting portion thatirradiates light in an image pickup direction.

The main body may further include a photograph operation portion that isprovided on a surface in a direction different from an image pickupdirection.

The main body may further include a tripod hole formed at an end portionthereof on the other side of an end portion connected to the lens tubeportion.

A communication unit capable of transmitting captured data to anexternal display apparatus may be further included.

The movable portion may further include a holding portion capable ofholding the external display apparatus in cooperation with the lens tubeportion.

According to another embodiment of the present technology, there isprovided an image pickup apparatus including an image pickup unit and anattachment portion.

The image pickup unit includes a lens tube portion.

The attachment portion is movable along an axial direction orthogonal toan optical axis of the lens tube portion, includes a holding portioncapable of holding a member to be attached in cooperation with the lenstube portion, and is connected to the image pickup unit.

Effects

As described above, according to the present technology, images that auser desires can be obtained by self-shooting. It should be noted thatthe effects described herein are not necessarily limited, and any effectdescribed in the present technology may be obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 A front view of an image pickup apparatus according to anembodiment of the present technology.

FIG. 2 A plan view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 3 A right-hand side view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 4 A left-hand side view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 5 A bottom view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 6 A back view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 7 A perspective view of the image pickup apparatus.

FIG. 8 A front view for explaining an operation example of the imagepickup apparatus.

FIG. 9 A perspective view for explaining the operation example of theimage pickup apparatus.

FIG. 10 A front view showing a usage example of the image pickupapparatus.

FIG. 11 A side view showing the usage example of the image pickupapparatus.

FIG. 12 A perspective view showing the usage example of the image pickupapparatus.

FIG. 13 A front view showing a modified example of a configuration ofthe differential image pickup apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present technology will be describedwith reference to the drawings.

[Overall Configuration of Image Pickup Apparatus]

FIGS. 1 to 7 each show an image pickup apparatus according to theembodiment of the present technology. FIG. 1 is a front view, FIG. 2 isa plan view, FIG. 3 is a right-hand side view, FIG. 4 is a left-handside view, FIG. 5 is a bottom view, FIG. 6 is a back view, and FIG. 7 isa front perspective view. Further, FIGS. 8 and 9 are respectively afront view and perspective view for explaining an operation example ofthe image pickup apparatus. FIGS. 10 to 12 are respectively a frontview, side view, and perspective view showing a usage example of theimage pickup apparatus.

It should be noted that the X-, Y-, and Z-axis directions in the figurerespectively indicate three axial directions orthogonal to one another.The X-axis direction corresponds to a lateral direction, the Y-axisdirection corresponds to a longitudinal direction, and the Z-axisdirection corresponds to a height direction.

The image pickup apparatus 1 of this embodiment can not only be usedindependently but also in combination with a mobile terminal 50 as amember to be attached or an external display apparatus as shown in FIGS.10 to 12.

[Configuration of Image Pickup Apparatus]

The image pickup apparatus 1 of this embodiment includes a main body 10and a movable unit 20.

Hereinafter, configurations of the main body 10 and the movable unit 20will be described.

(Main Body)

The main body 10 configures an image pickup unit including a lens tubeportion 30 and a casing portion 40.

The casing portion 40 has a longitudinal direction in the Z-axisdirection. The lens tube portion 30 is provided at an end portion 40 a(first end portion) as one of the end portions of the casing portion 40in the longitudinal direction, and the movable unit 20 is provided atthe other end portion 40 b (second end portion).

The casing portion 40 includes a front surface portion 41 (firstsurface) on an image pickup direction (+Y direction) side, a backsurface portion 42 (second surface) on the other side, and a sidesurface portion 43 provided between the front surface portion 41 and theback surface portion 42.

In this embodiment, outer shapes of the front surface portion 41 and theback surface portion 42 are each an oval having a long axis in theZ-axis direction, though of course not limited thereto. The frontsurface portion 41 has a flat surface and includes a concave groove 41 b(FIGS. 1 and 7) formed with a predetermined width at a center portionthereof in the Z-axis direction. On the other hand, the back surfaceportion 42 is formed by a partially-cylindrical curve having an axialcenter in the Z-axis direction.

The lens tube portion 30 is coupled to the end portion 40 a side of thefront surface portion 41. On the other hand, a to-be-engaged portion 41a capable of engaging with the movable unit 20 is formed on the endportion 40 b side of the front surface portion 41. The to-be-engagedportion 41 a is typically configured as a concave portion formed bypartially notching the end portion 40 b of the front surface portion 41.

On the back surface portion 42, for example, as a surface of the mainbody 10 on a side different from the image pickup direction (+Ydirection), a photograph operation portion including a zoom switch 42 aand a shutter button 42 b and a battery display portion 42 c areprovided as shown in FIG. 6. The shutter button 42 b is constituted of abutton that executes autofocus when the button is pressed halfway andstarts photographing when the button is pressed all the way. The batterydisplay portion 42 c displays a remaining battery charge.

In place of or in addition to the battery display portion 42 c, aframing image display screen may be provided. The zoom switch 42 a, theshutter button 42 b, and the display portion 42 c do not always need tobe arranged in the back surface portion 42 and may alternatively bearranged on the front surface portion 41 or the side surface portion 43.

On the end portion 40 b side of the side surface portion 43, an opening43 a is formed as shown in FIG. 5. An accommodation portion 44 (FIG. 1)capable of accommodating a part (movable portion 21) of the movable unit20 is formed from the opening 43 a to an inner portion of the casingportion 40. The accommodation portion 44 is typically configured as aspace portion that has a longitudinal direction in the Z-axis directionand is formed from the opening 43 a toward the end portion 40 a sidealong the Z-axis direction. The accommodation portion 44 may extend to aposition right under the lens tube portion 30.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a tripod attachment hole 43 b is formed atthe end portion 40 b on the other side of the end portion 40 a connectedto the lens tube portion 30 in the main body 10. With thisconfiguration, photographing can be performed while the image pickupapparatus 1 is attached to a tripod. The tripod attachment hole 43 b maybe omitted.

Although not shown, the casing portion 40 includes therein a controlunit, a communication unit, a battery, an external storage medium, andthe like.

The control unit functions as a control processing unit that controlsthe respective units of the image pickup apparatus 1 and controls therespective units based on instruction input signals and the likecorresponding to user input operations made via the button and switchdescribed above.

The communication unit includes a function for performing wirelesscommunication with external electronic apparatuses using NFC (Near FieldCommunication), WIFI (Wireless Fidelity), wireless LAN (Local AreaNetwork), and the like. Accordingly, for example, captured data ofimages, videos, and the like taken by the image pickup apparatus 1 canbe displayed on or stored in the mobile terminal 50 (external displayapparatus). It also becomes possible to perform various operations ofthe image pickup apparatus 1, such as a photographing operation and azoom operation, by operating the mobile terminal 50. Therefore, it isdesirable to use a material that does not inhibit wireless communicationwith an external electronic apparatus, such as a synthetic resin, for amember configuring an outer surface of the casing portion 40.

The battery is typically configured by a secondary battery capable ofbeing recharged repetitively, such as a lithium-ion battery. Typicallyused as the external storage medium is a card-type storage mediumincluding a semiconductor memory capable of storing image data acquiredby an image pickup device incorporated in the lens tube portion 30.

An audio device such as a speaker and a microphone may additionally beprovided in the casing portion 40.

The lens tube portion 30 has a cylindrical shape including a tip endportion 31, a base end portion 32, and a circumferential portion 33formed between the tip end portion 31 and the base end portion 32. Theshape of the lens tube portion 30 is not limited in particular, and acuboid shape or other shapes may be used instead, for example. The lenstube portion 30 is coupled to the front surface portion 41 on the endportion 40 a side of the casing portion 40 at the base end portion 32thereof.

A photographing lens 34 exposed from the tip end portion 31 is arrangedinside the lens tube portion 30. The photographing lens 34 includes azoom lens movable in an optical axis direction (Y-axis direction).Further, the lens tube portion 30 includes an image pickup devicetherein, and an object image imaged by the photographing lens 34 isphotoelectrically converted by the image pickup device so as to generateimage signals. The image pickup device does not need to be providedinside the lens tube portion 30 and may alternatively be provided insidethe casing portion 40.

The lens tube portion 30 may be configured to be rotatable about theoptical axis with respect to the casing portion 40. With thisconfiguration, the image pickup device inside the lens tube portion 30can similarly be rotated with the lens tube portion 30. Accordingly, adesired image pickup posture can be obtained without rotating the casingportion 40.

The lens tube portion 30 may be capable of tilting (tilt) within apredetermined angle range in a predetermined direction with respect tothe casing portion 40. Accordingly, a desired image pickup direction canbe obtained without rotating the casing portion 40.

The lens tube portion 30 includes a mirror surface portion provided on acircumference of the photographing lens 34. In this embodiment, as themirror surface portion, an annular convex mirror portion 35 is providedat the tip end portion 31 of the lens tube portion 30 along thecircumference of the photographing lens 34. The convex mirror portion 35is formed of a material having a high light reflectivity, typically ametal member such as aluminum and silver, a metal foil, or the like. Theconvex mirror portion 35 has a shape that is convex from thecircumferential portion toward the center in the image pickup direction(+Y direction). Accordingly, when the user (operator) performsself-shooting, the user can visually check his/her own figure(typically, user's face) reflected on the convex mirror portion 35 andperform a photographing operation while checking a relative positionwith respect to the photographing lens 34.

Further, since the convex mirror portion 35 is provided so as tosurround the photographing lens 34, photographing can be performed whileeyes and face of the user is directed in the optical axis direction. Inaddition, since the convex mirror portion 35 is convex in the imagepickup direction, a full-length figure of the user can be taken. Itshould be noted that the shape of the convex mirror portion 35 is notlimited in particular, and the convex mirror portion 35 may instead be aflat mirror portion orthogonal to the image pickup direction, forexample. Moreover, the convex mirror portion 35 may be omitted.

Furthermore, a light-emitting portion 36 capable of irradiating light inthe image pickup direction is arranged around the convex mirror portion35. The light-emitting portion 36 is constituted of a light-emittingdiode, for example. An emission color of the light-emitting portion 36is not limited in particular, but is typically white. The light-emittingportion 36 may be used as strobe light, or in the case of self-shooting,used for the purpose of brightening the user's face so as to obtain afavorable flesh color. It should be noted that the light-emittingportion 36 may be omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an engagement portion 33 a (first engagementportion) is provided in the circumferential portion 33 of the lens tubeportion 30. The engagement portion 33 a is configured to be capable ofholding the mobile terminal 50 in cooperation with the movable unit 20to be described later.

The engagement portion 33 a is formed in an area of the circumferentialportion 33 of the lens tube portion 30, that faces the end portion 40 bside of the casing portion 40. The engagement portion 33 a is typicallyformed by a flat surface or a curved dent formed so as to be capable ofholding the mobile terminal 50.

The configuration of the engagement portion 33 a is not limited to theexample described above and is not limited in particular as long as itcan prevent the mobile terminal 50 that is being held from falling off.For example, the engagement portion 33 a may be a protrusion protrudingfrom the circumferential portion 33 toward the movable unit 20 side.Alternatively, a member formed of a material having a high frictionresistance against the mobile terminal 50 may be provided as theengagement portion 33 a so that the mobile terminal 50 is held by africtional force. It should be noted that the engagement portion 33 adoes not need to be formed as a special form in the circumferentialportion 33 of the lens tube portion 30 and may be configured by apartial cylindrical surface of the circumferential portion 33.

The mobile terminal 50 is configured by an electronic apparatus thatincludes a display screen 51 and is capable of displaying image dataoutput from the image pickup device on the display screen 51 byperforming wireless communication with the communication unit of theimage pickup apparatus 1. A typical example of the mobile terminal 50 isa cell phone such as a smartphone.

[Configuration of Movable Unit]

The movable unit 20 includes a movable portion 21 and a bias member 24.

The movable portion 21 is connected to the casing portion 40 while beinglinearly movable between an accommodation position where it isaccommodated in the casing portion 40 as shown in FIG. 7 (firstposition) and a drawing position where it is apart from the end portion40 b of the casing portion 40 in the Z-axis direction as shown in FIGS.8 and 9 (second position). The movable portion 21 is configured as anattachment portion capable of holding the mobile terminal 50 incooperation with the lens tube portion 30.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the movable portion 21 includes a shaft-likemember 22 and an engagement member (second engagement portion or holdingportion). The movable portion 21 is provided in the main body 10 whilebeing extendable from the end portion 40 b of the casing portion 40.

The shaft-like member 22 includes a base end portion 22 a as an endportion on the casing portion 40 side and a tip end portion 22 b on theother side of the base end portion 22 a. The shaft-like member 22 isconfigured by a plate-like member having a width direction in the X-axisdirection, a thickness direction in the Y-axis direction, and alongitudinal direction in the Z-axis direction, but the shaft-likemember 22 may also take other shapes such as a cylinder and arectangular cylinder.

The engagement member 23 is configured by a plate-like member coupled tothe tip end portion 22 b of the shaft-like member 22 via a hinge. Theengagement member 23 is configured to be rotatable by substantially 90°between an accommodation posture at which it is folded on the shaft-likemember 22 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 (first posture) and a developmentposture at which it substantially forms a right angle with theshaft-like member 22 as shown in FIG. 9 (second posture).

At the accommodation posture, the engagement member 23 engages with theto-be-engaged portion 41 a formed at the end portion 40 b of the casingportion 40 at the accommodation position. At this time, as shown in FIG.1, by forming the engagement member 23 in a size and shape with whichthe entire engagement member 23 is accommodated in the area of theto-be-engaged portion 41 a, the movable portion 21 is prevented fromprotruding from the end portion 40 b of the casing portion 40.

On the other hand, at the development posture, the engagement member 23is configured such that it opposes the lens tube portion 30 in theZ-axis direction and is capable of holding the mobile terminal 50 incooperation with the engagement portion 33 a of the lens tube portion 30at the drawing position.

The shape and thickness of the engagement member 23 are not limited inparticular as long as it can hold the mobile terminal 50 in cooperationwith the engagement portion 33 a. The engagement member 23 may also takeother shapes or configurations for stably holding the mobile terminal50. For example, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 11, a protrusion 23 a forimproving holding stability of the mobile terminal 50 is provided at atip end portion of the engagement member 23 while protruding toward themain body 10 side at the development posture. In this case, as shown inFIG. 9, an accommodation groove 22 c capable of accommodating theprotrusion 23 a at the accommodation posture is formed on the shaft-likemember 22.

A drawing length (movement distance) of the movable portion 21 from theaccommodation position to the drawing position is not limited inparticular as long it can hold the mobile terminal 50 of a predeterminedsize. Typically, stoppers 22 s (FIG. 8) that prevent the movable portion21 from falling off from the opening 43 a that is in communication withthe accommodation portion 44 are provided in the vicinity of the baseend portion 22 a of the shaft-like member 22. In this case, a maximumdrawing length of the movable portion 21 to the drawing positioncorresponds to a length from the accommodation position to a positionwhere the drawing operation of the movable portion 21 is restricted bythe stoppers 22 s.

As shown in FIG. 8, for example, the bias member 24 is configured by aplurality of elastic members arranged between supporting portions 40 sprovided inside the casing portion 40 and the stoppers 22 s of themovable portion 21. The bias member 24 biases the movable portion 21toward the accommodation position. The bias member 24, the supportingportions 40 s, and the stopper portions 22 s configure the “biasmechanism” of the movable portion 21.

The bias member 24 applies a clamping force corresponding to an elasticforce of the bias member 24 to the mobile terminal 50 arranged betweenthe lens tube portion 30 (engagement portion 33 a) and the movableportion (engagement member 23). Accordingly, the mobile terminal 50 canbe held stably. Moreover, when the movable portion 21 is at theaccommodation position, the bias member 24 prevents the movable portion21 from inadvertently popping out of the casing portion 40. Accordingly,it becomes possible to carry the image pickup apparatus 1 whileprotecting the movable portion 21 from breakages and the like.

The bias member 24 is not limited to the example where it is configuredby an extension spring as shown in FIG. 11, and the bias member 24 mayinstead be configured by a compression spring. The bias member 24 is notlimited in particular as long as it can bias the movable portion 21 asdescribed above and may be configured by other elastic members such as aplate spring and a rubber member.

[Usage Example of d Image Pickup Apparatus]

Hereinafter, a typical usage example of the image pickup apparatus 1will be described.

The image pickup apparatus 1 of this embodiment is used as a still imagephotographing camera, a moving image shooting video camera, and thelike. In this case, the image pickup apparatus 1 may be usedindependently or used in cooperation with a mobile terminal such as asmartphone.

(Independent Usage Example)

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, the image pickup apparatus 1 is carried andused while the movable portion 21 is accommodated in the casing portion40. At this time, the engagement member 23 of the movable portion 21takes an accommodation posture to be engaged with the to-be-engagedportion 41 a of the casing portion 40. Accordingly, the casing portion40 can be handled without causing the movable portion 21 to protrudefrom the end portion 40 b of the casing portion 40, and lowering ofoperability due to the movable portion 21 protruding during use can beprevented from occurring.

The image pickup apparatus 1 may be used while the longitudinaldirection of the casing portion 40 is directed in either thelongitudinal direction or the lateral direction. The image pickupapparatus 1 may be used for photographing objects other than the user(photographer) or used for photographing the user him/herself.

When the image pickup apparatus 1 is used to photograph the userhim/herself, the user can photograph while checking his/her own figureon the convex mirror portion 35 provided in the lens tube portion 30,and thus it becomes possible to easily acquire an image intended by theuser. Moreover, when a part of the fingers (typically, thumb) of theuser holding the image pickup apparatus 1 is positioned on the concavegroove 41 b of the front surface portion 41 of the casing portion 40,since a movement of the finger in the X-axis direction is absorbed orrelieved by the concave groove, a stable still image without a handmovement can be obtained.

(Usage Example when Used in Cooperation with Mobile Terminal)

The image pickup apparatus 1 can be used in combination with a mobileterminal such as a smartphone. In this case, the mobile terminal 50 isattached to the image pickup apparatus 1 via the movable unit 20functioning as the attachment portion.

In attaching the mobile terminal 50 to the image pickup apparatus 1, themovable portion 21 at the accommodation position is first drawn out inthe Z-axis direction, and the engagement member 23 is rotated to be setat the development posture from the accommodation posture. Typically, itis favorable for the movable portion 21 to be drawn out by a distancelarger than the width or length of the mobile terminal 50.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, the mobile terminal 50 is brought intocontact with the front surface portion 41 of the casing portion 40 whilethe display screen 51 faces the image pickup direction (+Y direction),and an upper end portion of the mobile terminal 50 is brought intocontact with the engagement portion 33 a formed on the circumferentialportion 33 of the lens tube portion 30. Then, the movable portion 21 ismoved toward the casing portion 40 side so that the engagement member 23is brought into contact with a lower end portion of the mobile terminal50.

The mobile terminal 50 is attached to the image pickup apparatus 1 asdescribed above. Since the movable unit 20 includes the bias member 24that biases the movable portion 21 toward the casing portion 40 side,the mobile terminal 50 can be stably held between the engagement portion33 a of the lens tube portion 30 and the engagement member 23 of themovable portion 21 with a predetermined clamping force. End surfaces ofthe mobile terminal 50 supported by the engagement portion 33 a and theengagement member 23 are not limited to both end portions on short sidesshown in FIGS. 10 to 12 and may instead be both end portions on longsides.

Since the mobile terminal 50 attached to the image pickup unit (mainbody 10) via the attachment portion (movable portion 21) is provided inthe vicinity of the casing portion 40, near-field communication (NFC)can be performed between the image pickup apparatus 1 and the mobileterminal 50. As a result, it becomes possible to realize usage patternssuch as transmitting an object image acquired by the image pickupapparatus 1 to the mobile terminal 50, causing the object image to bedisplayed on the display screen 51 of the mobile terminal 50, andtransmitting the object image to other electronic apparatuses via theInternet using a communication function of the mobile terminal 50(tethering).

Further, since the mobile terminal 50 is held while the display screen51 of the mobile terminal 50 faces the image pickup direction, the usercan photograph him/herself while checking an object image on the displayscreen 51. Accordingly, a desired image of the user can be obtained byself-shooting.

Also in this case, it is possible to adjust the relative positionalrelationship between the user him/herself and the photographing lens 34while looking at the annular convex mirror portion 35 provided in thelens tube portion 30. Further, by causing the light-emitting portion 36to emit light, the user's face and the like can be adjusted to a desiredbrightness.

The embodiment of the present technology has been described heretofore,but the present technology is not limited to the embodiment above andcan of course be variously modified without departing from the gist ofthe present technology.

The embodiment above takes the mobile terminal 50 as an example of themember to be attached. However, a reflector capable of reflecting auser's own figure, such as a hand mirror, may be used instead.Accordingly, a desired image of the user can be obtained byself-shooting.

Moreover, while an independent shaft-like or plate-like member is usedas the movable portion 21 in the embodiment above, the movable portion21 can be configured by a plurality of those. For example, as in animage pickup apparatus 2 shown in FIG. 13, a movable portion 61including a plurality of shaft-like members 62 each including anengagement member 63 capable of holding one of two corner portions atlower ends of the mobile terminal 50, may be configured. In this case,an effect of further improving the holding stability of the mobileterminal 50 is expected to be obtained.

Furthermore, instead of or in addition to the configuration of drawingout the movable portion 21 from the casing portion 40 by a slidingoperation, a configuration in which the movable portion 21 is extendedfrom the casing portion 40 by being developed from the folded state atthe accommodation position may be adopted. In addition, the entiremovable portion may be configured by an elastic member such as asynthetic resin and a spring member.

Furthermore, the casing portion 40 and the lens tube portion 30 areformed integrally in the embodiment above, but the relative positions ofthe lens tube portion and the casing portion may become variable. Inother words, it is possible to configure the casing portion as a part ofthe movable unit and hold the member to be attached such as a mobileterminal between the lens tube portion and the casing portion.

It should be noted that the present technology may also take thefollowing configurations.

(1) An image pickup apparatus, including:

a main body including a lens tube portion; and

a movable unit including a movable portion and a bias portion thatbiases the movable portion toward the lens tube portion, the movableportion having a relative position with respect to the lens tube portionbeing variable along an axial direction orthogonal to an optical axis ofthe lens tube portion.

(2) The image pickup apparatus according to (1), in which

the main body further includes a casing portion that has a longitudinaldirection in the axial direction orthogonal to the optical axis and iscapable of accommodating the movable portion.

(3) The image pickup apparatus according to (2), in which

the lens tube portion is provided at one of end portions of the casingportion in the longitudinal direction, and

the movable portion is extendable from the other one of the end portionsof the casing portion in the longitudinal direction.

(4) The image pickup apparatus according to (2) or (3), in which

the movable portion is configured by a shaft-like member that has alongitudinal direction in the axial direction orthogonal to the opticalaxis and is movable along the second axial direction, and

the bias portion includes an elastic member fixed between the shaft-likemember and the casing.

(5) The image pickup apparatus according to (3) or (4), in which

the movable portion further includes an engagement portion and ismovable between a first position at which the engagement portion engageswith the other one of the end portions and a second position at whichthe engagement portion is positioned apart from the other one of the endportions in the axial direction orthogonal to the optical axis.

(6) The image pickup apparatus according to (5), in which

the engagement portion is configured to be switchable between a firstposture at which the engagement portion engages with the other one ofthe end portions at the first position and a second posture at which theengagement portion can hold a member to be attached in cooperation withthe lens tube portion at the second position.

(7) The image pickup apparatus according to any one of (1) to (6), inwhich

the lens tube portion includes a lens and a mirror surface portion in acircumference of the lens.

(8) The image pickup apparatus according to (7), in which the mirrorsurface portion is an annular convex mirror portion that is convex in animage pickup direction.

(9) The image pickup apparatus according to any one of (1) to (8), inwhich

the lens tube portion further includes a light-emitting portion thatirradiates light in an image pickup direction.

(10) The image pickup apparatus according to any one of (1) to (9), inwhich

the main body further includes a photograph operation portion that isprovided on a surface in a direction different from an image pickupdirection.

(11) The image pickup apparatus according to any one of (1) to (10), inwhich

the main body further includes a tripod hole formed at an end portionthereof on the other side of an end portion connected to the lens tubeportion.

(12) The image pickup apparatus according to any one of (1) to (11),further including

a communication unit capable of transmitting captured data to anexternal display apparatus.

(13) The image pickup apparatus according to (12), in which

the movable portion further includes a holding portion capable ofholding the external display apparatus in cooperation with the lens tubeportion.

(14) An image pickup apparatus, including:

an image pickup unit including a lens tube portion; and

an attachment portion that is movable along an axial directionorthogonal to an optical axis of the lens tube portion, includes aholding portion capable of holding a member to be attached incooperation with the lens tube portion, and is connected to the imagepickup unit.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS

-   image pickup apparatus-   10 main body-   20 movable unit-   21 movable portion-   22 shaft-like member-   23 engagement member-   24 bias member-   30 lens tube portion-   33 a engagement portion-   34 photographing lens-   35 convex mirror portion-   36 light-emitting portion-   40 casing portion-   50 mobile terminal

The invention claimed is:
 1. An imaging apparatus, comprising: a mainbody; a lens tube portion coupled to the main body; and a movable unitincluding: a movable portion including at least two contact portions,wherein the at least two contact portions are configured to contact atleast two corners of an external display device; and a bias portionconfigured to bias the movable portion towards the main body, wherein arelative position of the movable portion with respect to the lens tubeportion is variable along an axial direction orthogonal to an opticalaxis of the lens tube portion.
 2. The imaging apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein: the movable portion further includes a movable member,the movable member is configured to move toward a direction and coupleto one of the at least two contact portions, and each of the at leasttwo contact portions is configured to contact a part of the externaldisplay device.
 3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 2, whereinthe bias portion is configured to bias the external display devicetoward the main body via one of the at least two contact portions. 4.The imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least twocontact portions include a holding stabilizing portion, and the holdingstabilizing portion comprises a counter surface that faces the movablemember.
 5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the atleast two contact portions include: a first contact portion configuredto contact a first corner of the at least two corners of the externaldisplay device, and a second contact portion configured to contact asecond corner of the at least two corners of the external displaydevice.
 6. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: the mainbody further includes an indicator, the indicator indicates status of abattery and a battery supply power to the imaging apparatus.
 7. Theimaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main body furtherincludes a communication unit, the communication unit is configured towirelessly communicate with the external display device.
 8. The imagingapparatus according to claim 7, wherein the imaging apparatus isconfigured to send a captured image to the external display device viathe communication unit.
 9. The imaging apparatus according to claim 7,wherein the imaging apparatus receives an image capturing instructionfrom the external display device.